Advances in Medical Technology

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Advances in Medical Technology
Over the course of many centuries, medical technology has developed to a great extent. Studies show that recent equipment has evolved more in the last ten to twenty years than in the past thousand years. Before human time, people learned to treat themselves by just using natural substances. Now-a-days, our hi-tech systems in the medical field have been created for the most effective tools for a high level of patient care. While they advance the tools, it will then allow for quicker diagnosis, less pain, and fewer costs, which in the end will help save more lives. Some people are accepting that modern technology can buy them more time to live while others might find it quite alarming because they fear they have a loss of control. In places like hospitals, nursing homes, and households, patients and doctors are using this technology all the time. Unfortunately, not always is the equipment going to be successful to patient care; there could be a few cases where something could go wrong.
In Edward Tenner’s excerpt “Another Look Back, and a Look Ahead” he explains what he refers to as “revenge effects”. These are the unintentional negative consequences that sometimes occur when introducing new technology into practice. They are not thought about before an event occurs but only after these “revenge effects” can it overshadow the benefits that the advancements may have had. Complex devises that work together with our human system always generate revenge effects. In the excerpt, he explains that the hype of new discovery sometimes overshadows the possibility that this new product or practice may not be the safest and most efficient thing. We jump into new ideas, because the idea of something be...

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...osing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 16 Apr 2014.
Bettelheim, Adriel. “Drug-Resistant Bacteria” CQ Researcher, 9, 473-496. (1999). N. pag. Web. 16 Apr. 2014
Callahan, Daniel. “Curbing Medical Costs: The ‘Unpopular’ Problem.” America 10 Mar. 2008: 9+ Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 16 Apr. 2014
Deyo, Richard A. Hope or Hype: The Obsession with Medical Advances and The High Cost of False Promises. New York: AMACOM, American Management Association, 2005 Print.
Jost, Kenneth. “Medical Malpractice” CQ Researcher, 13, 129-152. (2003): n. pag. Web. 16 Apr. 2014
People’s Century, Living Longer. Dir. Peter Ceresole. PBS Video, 1999. PBS Video Database of America’s History & Culture Merged Index. Web. 16 Apr 2014
Tenner, Edward. “Another Look Back, and a Look Ahead” The New Humanities Reader. Ed. Richard E. Miller and Kurt Spellmeyer. New York: 2009. 432-457

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